It was a crisp autumn day in Seoul, hot summer was finally over and the leaves were beginning to turn into a majestic red on its branches. Temperatures were slowly dipping, making everyday perfect for a warm, comforting cup of coffee. 

 

Walking up to the oak wood door, the Manager, Kang SeokGu took out his brass keys and unlocked the entrance to the coffee house. The small bell attached to the top of the door jingled as it opened. 

 

Not taking long before the kitchen staff trailed in, each of them greeting Manager Kang as he got to starting up the cash register along with the coffee machines. 

 

Last to arrive but not late, HimChan and Zelo turned up only a few minutes apart. Both of them causing more ruckus with their attendance. 

 

"Manager Kang, we're running low on grinds for Mexican beans" HimChan called out when he took stock of how much they had.

 

"You can head into the storage room and grab a kilogram of it." Manager Kang threw the keys over to him. 

 

"We're low on Colombian as well" Zelo chimed, also asking for permission to go into the storeroom. 

 

"Go ahead Zelo, just remember to stop burning the beans. One more time and its going to come out of your pay" He gave the youngest at stern look.

 

"Aish! I get it Manager Kang, I need to be more serious and pay attention when roasting them." Zelo complained as he ran after HimChan to the storeroom. Muttering how he would never hear the end of his roasting accident last week and the week before.

 

Last week's accident wasn't his fault, how would he know that he had a sudden need to use the bathroom? Causing him to leave the beans alone for 10 minutes. Forgetting that they had already been in there 10 minutes earlier on and was close to its second crack, an audible cracking sound caused by the bean that signifies roasting completion.

 

By the time he came back the sugar in the beans were beyond caramelized and were close to burning.

 

Giving a sigh of relief when today's batch of roasted beans came out nicely, Zelo let them cool down and took out some air-tight ceramic canisters to set aside the amount that were not going to be grounded today. 

 

While the beans cooled, HimChan went on to preparing the first batch of coffee and Zelo began cleaning the tables and chairs, restocking the self-service counter's napkins, different types of sugar, stirrers and straws.

 

Everything was set and as they put on the "open" sign, it didn't take long for their first customer to walk in for their morning fix.

 

HimChan brushed his hands on his hunter green apron to get rid of some stray coffee grounds and greeted politely as he stood behind the cashier.

 

Quickly scanning through the menu, "Hi, I'd like to have a regular hot cafe mocha to go" the young office lady said quickly and began rummaging through her bag for her wallet. 

 

Just as she was about to hand him the cash, the door bell jingled and HimChan smiled when he saw who walked in.

 

"JongUp!" He called loudly so that he could be heard beyond the music that was playing from his earplugs. Not particularly caring about how he had startled the customer before him.

 

"Oh, hi Hyung" the younger greeted as he slowly walked up to the counter.

 

"Just in time, we've just got an order for a regular hot mocha to go for the beautiful young lady here" HimChan told JongUp the young office lady's order and she was slightly dazed while holding out her cash, not expecting a compliment from someone she didn't know.

 

"Cafe mocha coming right up" he said after putting on his apron and washing his hands. 

 

Giving back her change, "His specialty is making that, you would enjoy your drink more if he made it compared to me." HimChan explained. 

 

"Really? I guess I'm lucky that he came in at the right time." The young office lady answered back after a few seconds of watching JongUp making her drink. "How about you?" 

 

"Me?"

 

"What's your specialty drink?"

 

"Americano and Vienna coffee" HimChan smiled. 

 

Hearing that her coffee is ready, "I'll come by again and try them if I have the time." she returned the smile before going to collect it.

 

"If you're not too busy, open the lid before taking a drink" JongUp said politely before handing the coffee over and heading into the staff room to change into his proper uniform. Standing there at the pickup counter, she wanted to ask what it could be from the cashier but he was busy taking the order of another customer. 

 

Wondering what it could be while moving to the self-service counter to grab a few napkins. She opened the lid and was pleasantly surprised to see coffee art on her cafe mocha.

 

Have a

nice day :)

 

Finely written on top of the smooth whipped cream in chocolate sauce, the young office lady smiled at the sweet gesture. Unable to help herself, she took out her phone to take a picture, wanting to keep a memory of it.

 

"JongUp usually does that for the first cup of coffee he makes" a young voice informs her.

 

Turning to the direction of where the sound came from, she couldn't help but to look up because of his tall height.

 

"Help me tell him that I said thanks" She smiled, putting the lid back on and grabbed a stirrer before leaving in a hurry. 

 

Even though her stop for coffee took longer than she expected and was making her hard pressed for time, walking hurriedly down the street to get to the office. 

 

The drink she held in her hand was a pleasant surprise. Glad to arrive at work on the dot, the young office lady sat at her desk and smiled while stirring her drink. Taking in the rich aromatic smells as she mixed the espresso, chocolate and whipped cream well. 

 

Feeling energized and ready for work after a long sip, if only she could sit back and relax to this delicious cup of coffee instead of working.

 

*It's a wonder what a good cup of coffee can do for a person.* She thought to herself as she got started on her work and typing away on her computer. 

 

Staring at the remaining coffee by the side of her desk, *I'm definitely heading back to that quaint coffee house again.*